Armed Forces: Welfare

Lord Garden: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether there is any bar to serving members of the Armed Forces forming an association along the lines of the Police Federation.

Lord Drayson: The Police Federation of England and Wales was established by the Police Act 1919, under which it has a statutory responsibility to represent its members in all matters affecting their welfare and efficiency. There is no similar basis under which members of the Armed Forces could form an association along these lines.
	There are, however, a number of alternative processes in place to ensure members of the Armed Forces can express their views on matters which affect their service or their welfare. There are regular surveys to monitor welfare matters, and it is an integral part of the duty of our chain of command to look after the welfare and well-being of their people. Individuals have the right to complain about any matter relating to their service to the Defence Council. Further modernisation of the complaints process is being proposed, including the introduction of an independent element as part of the Armed Forces Bill.

Aviation: Fuel Tax

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much additional revenue would be raised per year if aviation fuel was taxed at the same rate as the current rate for petrol.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: A discussion paper published jointly by HM Treasury and the Department for Transport in March 2003, entitled Aviation and the Environment: using economic instruments, considered the role of economic instruments and the environmental costs of aviation. This was also considered in Air Transport White Paper, The Future of Air Transport, published on 16 December 2003 and in chapter 5 of Aviation and Global Warming, published by the Department for Transport on 10 February 2004.
	The Air Transport White Paper set out the conclusions of the Government's analysis, including our view that aviation should be brought within the EU Emissions Trading Scheme by 2008 as the most effective way of tackling the climate change impact. Along with other measures to tackle local environmental impacts, this will help to ensure that the air transport sector meets its environmental costs.
	Although it is possible to make a crude estimate of potential revenue gains from charging duty on aviation turbine fuel at road fuel rates, the Government do not accept such direct comparisons as valid as they assume no change in demand or the working practices of the aviation industry. The Government have not undertaken an analysis of the demand impacts of specific measures which are not legally possible, such as tax on fuel for international flights, but we are continuing to explore options for using economic instruments.

Aviation: Fuel Tax

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What assessment they have made of the impact on air passenger numbers of taxing aviation fuel at the same level as petrol.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: A discussion paper published jointly by HM Treasury and the Department for Transport in March 2003, entitled Aviation and the Environment: using economic instruments, considered the role of economic instruments and the environmental costs of aviation. This was also considered in Air Transport White Paper, The Future of Air Transport, published on 16 December 2003 and in chapter 5 of Aviation and Global Warming, published by the Department for Transport on 10 February 2004.
	The Air Transport White Paper set out the conclusions of the Government's analysis, including our view that aviation should be brought within the EU Emissions Trading Scheme by 2008 as the most effective way of tackling the climate change impact. Along with other measures to tackle local environmental impacts, this will help to ensure that the air transport sector meets its environmental costs.
	The Government have not undertaken an analysis of the demand impacts of specific measures which are not legally possible, such as tax on fuel for international flights, but we are continuing to explore options for using economic instruments.

Cancer: Prostate

Lord Taylor of Warwick: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What efforts are being made to encourage more men to have prostate cancer screening, given that prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men in Britain.

Lord Warner: We do not currently screen men for prostate cancer as both screening and treatment techniques are not sufficiently well developed to allow for such screening. However, the Government are committed to introducing a national screening programme for prostate cancer if and when screening and treatment techniques are sufficiently well developed. The National Screening Committee keeps this work under review.
	Research under way in both Europe and the United States of America looking at whether screening using the prostate specific antigen test would reduce the death rate from prostate cancer is being monitored closely. It is worth noting that prostate cancer is the only cancer with a Department of Health research target, and we are currently spending the promised £4.2 million a year. Much of this work is relevant to screening.

Charities: VAT Payments

Lord Morris of Manchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What was the yield of VAT which could not be recovered from (a) disability charities as a whole, and (b) the charity SCOPE, in each of the past five years.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: HM Revenue and Customs does not collect data on VAT from individual goods and services, or on charities' non-recoverable VAT costs.

Civil Service: Relocation to Belfast

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they plan to relocate Civil Service jobs either into or out of the Belfast area in the next three years; if so, which jobs; to which locations; and why.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: The Government are committed to relocating 20,000 civil servants out of London and the south-east by 2010. Pre-Budget Report 2005 reported that over 6,300 posts have already been relocated. The Department of Trade and Industry has moved 13 Postwatch posts to Belfast and the Home Office has relocated two posts at the Immigration and Nationality Directorate National Asylum Support Service to Belfast. The Northern Ireland Office has moved 6.5 full-time equivalent posts to Northern Ireland.
	HM Treasury has not been informed of any confirmed plans to move further posts into or out of Belfast, but this is a matter for individual departments which are responsible for deciding on sites for relocation, taking into account both their business needs and local economic factors, as set out in central guidance.

Commission for Racial Equality

Lord Ouseley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether any non-compliance notices have been issued by the Commission for Racial Equality against any higher education institution in England, Wales or Scotland; if so, against which institutions; and why they were issued.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The Commission for Racial Equality has not issued any compliance notices against any higher education institution in England, Wales or Scotland.

Criminal Offences

Lord Tebbit: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Scotland of Asthal on 24 November (WA 228), whether the list of new offences created since 1 May 1997 includes all those created under European law and by secondary legislation.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The list of offences set out in my Answer of 24 November 2005 include those created by primary legislation, secondary legislation and our obligations under European law.

Identity Fraud

Baroness Goudie: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	When the next Government study into identity fraud will be published; and
	When the next Cabinet Office study into levels of identity fraud in the United Kingdom will be published.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Following the recommendations of the 2002 Cabinet Office study into the nature and extent of identity fraud, the Home Office set up the Identity Fraud Steering Group to lead a cross public/private sector work programme to tackle identity theft and fraud. The programme co-ordinates existing activity in the public and private sectors and identifies new projects and initiatives to reduce identity related crime. The IFSC has set up a new website—www.identity theft.org.uk—which gives advice about identity fraud and also contains a chair's progress report on the work of the IFSC. Copies of the report will be placed in the House Library.

Inter-Parliamentary Bodies

Lord Jopling: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What inter-parliamentary bodies in the United Kingdom, such as the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the British-American Parliamentary Group, are principally funded out of public funds; how much money is allocated to each group per annum; what, if any, parliamentary resolution or legislation set the bodies up; and what is the current membership of each body, split between members of each House of Parliament.

Lord Triesman: The Government provide funding as grant-in-aid for four inter-parliamentary bodies: the United Kingdom branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA); the British Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (BGIPU); the British-American Parliamentary Group (BAPG); and the British-Irish Inter-Parliamentary Body (BIIPB). The money allocated and membership of each group is as follows.
	
		
			   Membership: House of Commons Membership: House of Lords 
			 CPA £1,620,542 394 296 
			 BGIPU £1,400,000 413 340 
			 BAPG £94,000 382 260 
			 BIIPB £170,000 32 9 
		
	
	None of these bodies was established by legislation.
	Parliamentary delegations attend the inter-parliamentary assemblies of the following international bodies.
	
		
			  Membership:House of Commons Membership:House of Lords 
			 Western European Union 29 7 
			 Council of Europe 16 3 
			 Organisation for Security &Co-operation in Europe 25 3 
			 North Atlantic TreatyOrganisation 15 3 
		
	
	Expenditure relating to these delegations is for the authorities of the relevant House of Parliament.

Local Authorities: Asset Management

Lord Whitty: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Why the forward projection for disposal of local authority assets of £3.9 billion for 2008 in Table C16 of the 2005 Budget Report has risen to £5.1 billion in Table B22 of the December 2005 Pre-Budget Report; and what assumptions lie behind each projection as to the assets to be disposed of.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: The £3.9 billion figure in Table C16 of the 2005 Budget Report was based on the Lyons review of asset management, which forecast a gradual decline in local authority asset disposals towards 2010. The £5.1 billion figure in Table B22 of the 2005 Pre-Budget Report was rolled forward from the outturn data for 2004–05, which showed asset disposals continuing at a higher level than forecast by Lyons.

Middle East Peace Process: FCO Staff

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will increase the personnel working in the Middle East peace process section of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in view of the continued political unrest in the area.

Lord Triesman: The Middle East peace process remains a foreign policy priority for the Government, and we remain energetically engaged.
	We believe the current staffing levels for the Middle East peace process section of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are appropriate. But we continue to keep such issues under regular review.

NHS: Management and Administration Costs

Lord Campbell-Savours: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is the total management and administrative cost of the National Health Service, as a proportion of national National Health Service expenditure, in each year since 1997.

Lord Warner: The management and administration costs of the National Health Service since 1997 are set out as follows.
	
		Administration Costs
		
			  1996–97 £ million 1997–98 £ million 1998–99 £ million 1999–2000£ million 2000–01 £ million 2001–02 £ million 2002–03 £ million 2003–04 £ million 2004–05 £ million 
			 Total administration costs in HAs & PCTs and management costs in NHS trusts 2,020 1,963 1,935 2,158 2,166 2,565 N/A 3,345 3,412 
			 NHS Total Expenditure (England) 32,997 34,664 36,608 40,201 43,932 49,021 54,042 63,001 69,706 
			 As a percentage of total net NHS expenditure 6.1% 5.7% 5.3% 5.4% 4.9% 5.2% N/A 5.3% 4.9% 
		
	
	Notes:
	1 2002–03 figures—contains significant, unmeasurable element of double counting of PCT costs, in particular shared services, therefore figures would not be consistent.
	2 From 2004–05 NHS administration costs are calculated using administrative and clerical figures from the administration and estates staff costs. These figures are not directly comparable.
	3 These figures do not contain NHS Foundation Trust counts in 2004–05; NHS Foundation Trusts report management costs separately to Monitor, the Independent Regulator for NHS Foundation Trusts, using Department of Health management costs guidance as best practice. Information on FT costs can be found in their individual accounts which were laid before Parliament on 22 November 2005. Paragraph 11(3) of Schedule 2 to the Act requires Monitor to prepare a report which provides an overall summary of the accounts of NHS Foundation Trusts, lay this before Parliament and send a copy to the Secretary of State for Health.
	Sources:
	Audited health authority annual accounts 1997–98 to 1998–99
	Audited (strategic) health authority summarisation forms 1999–2000 to 2003–04
	Audited NHS trust summarisation schedules 1997–98 to 2003–04
	Audited primary care trust summarisation schedules 2000–01 to 2003–04
	Total net NHS expenditure (England) (2004–05 is estimated outturn expenditure)
	Financial returns of primary care trusts, strategic health authorities and NHS trusts for 2004–05.
	
		NHS Management costs -- Management Costs Data—year on year trends
		
			  1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
			 Management Costs £ million £ million £ million £ million £ million £ million £ million £ million £ million 
			 Total 1,676 1,728 1,704 1,784 1,867 1,993 2,131 2,387 2,577 
			 Total NHS Expenditure 32,997 34,664 36,608 40,201 43,932 49,021 54,042 63,001 69,706 
			 Management costs as percentage of NHS Spend 5.1% 5.0% 4.7% 4.4% 4.3% 4.1% 3.9% 3.8% 3.7% 
		
	
	Sources:
	Audited health authority annual accounts 1997–98 to 1998–99
	Audited (strategic) health authority summarisation forms 1999–2000 to 2004–05
	Audited NHS trust summarisation schedules 1997–98 to 2004–05
	Audited primary care trust summarisation schedules 2000–01 to 2004–05
	Total net NHS expenditure (England) (2004–05 is estimated outturn expenditure)

Palestine: Elections

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they have made representations to the Palestinian Authority on the case for general elections being held at the end of January; and, if so, what response was made.

Lord Triesman: President Abbas has stated that the Palestinian legislative election will proceed on 25 January. Campaigning and elections will go ahead in East Jerusalem in the same manner as the 1996 and 2005 elections. We urge both the Palestinian and Israeli authorities to co-operate to facilitate the elections.
	The EU presidency raised matters relating to the forthcoming Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections on 9 January with President Abbas and stressed its support for the PLC elections to take place as scheduled on 25 January.

Passports: Personal Interviews

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is their intention regarding the necessity for personal interviews before a passport can be issued.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The Government's intentions were set out on 21 December 2004 in a Written Statement in the other place by Des Browne MP, at that time Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Nationality. From late 2006, adults applying for a passport for the first time will be required to attend a short meeting before a passport can be issued. Applications will, as now, be sent in by post or through the check and send service. When the UK Passport Service has completed the checks needed to establish that an application shows a real identity that is eligible for a British passport, the applicant will be invited to make an appointment at an interview office. The key purpose of the interview is to ascertain that the applicant actually is the person whose details were given in the application. To do this, the interview will use questions based on information derived from the checking process. The genuine applicant will know the answers but a person attempting to use another's identity may not. This improvement in the process of establishing identity supports the improvements in passport security being introduced through the use of biometric technology. Since the announcement was made, preparatory work for implementation has continued and detailed plans will be announced in due course.

Public Assets: Receipts from Sales

Lord Whitty: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What the total level of disposal of public assets by (a) central government, (b) local authorities and (c) public corporations has been in each year since 1990.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: Table 3.10 of Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA) 2005 shows receipts from sales of public assets by central government, local authorities and public corporations from 1999–2000. The same table in PESA 2004 covers the figures from 1998–99. Corresponding tables in earlier PESAs show receipts from sales by central government and local authorities, but not public corporations from 1993–94. Corresponding data earlier than that are not held. PESAs are accessible from the Treasury's pubic website at www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/economic–data–and–tools/finance–spending–statistics/pes–publications/pespub–index.cfm.

Railways: Passenger Compensation

Lord Berkeley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What are the terms of compensation for passengers in the event of their trains being delayed or cancelled; where this information is available; and what action they take to ensure that the terms are adhered to.

Lord Davies of Oldham: Minimum compensation levels are laid down in the National Rail Conditions of Carriage, available from any station, any train operator, or online at www.nationalrail.co.uk. Passengers with single and return tickets are entitled to 20 per cent of the fare paid for their journey, payable in travel vouchers, in the event of a delay over an hour. Individual train operators' compensation arrangements, many exceeding the minimum set out in the conditions of carriage, are contained in the relevant operator's passengers' charter, available from stations and customer services, or online at the train operator's website. If an operator fails to adhere to the terms of the National Rail Conditions of Carriage, this may be a breach of its passenger licence and franchise agreement. If the operator does not adhere to the terms of its passengers' charter, this may be a breach of its franchise agreement.

Treasury: Managing Risks to the Public

Lord Broers: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they plan to strengthen the guidance on the precautionary principle contained in HM Treasury's guidance on Managing Risks to the Public.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: Her Majesty's Government have no plans to update the Managing Risks to the Public: appraisal guidance which was published on 17 June 2005 following wide consultation.

Treasury: Managing Risks to the Public

Lord Broers: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Why HM Treasury's guidance on Managing Risks to the Public makes no mention of the guidance contained in the 2002 report of the Interdepartmental Liaison Group on Risk Assessment.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: The Treasury's appraisal guidance on Managing Risks to the Public is designed to be applied to a broad range of policy issues including those to which the precautionary principle may apply.
	The Treasury guidance makes reference to "precautionary action" on page 17 and Annexe B gives the Government's five principles of managing risks to the public—openness and transparency, involvement, proportionality and consistency, evidence, and responsibility—which following consultation were first published in September 2003 1 .
	Publication of the five principles was recommended to the Government in the Cabinet Office's Strategy Unit report on risk published in November 2002 2 . Section 5.15 of the Strategy Unit report made specific reference to the work of the Interdepartmental Liaison Group on Risk Assessment with Annexe 9 providing an adapted version of the guidance contained in the 2002 report of the Interdepartmental Liaison Group on Risk Assessment. 1 www.hm-treasury.gov.uk./media/C87/A1/risk–principles–180903.pdf. 2 Risk: Improving government's capability to handle risk and uncertainty. Strategy Unit, Nov 2002.